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February 2nd, 2013 - OUR MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI!

OUR SUBJECTLESS TALK SUBJECT WILL BE RECENT KOANS FROM 'THE BOOK OF SERENITY'.

Please 'sit-a-long' with our MONTHLY4-hourZAZENKAI, netcast LIVE8am to noon Japan time Saturday morning (that is New York 6pm to 10pm, Los Angeles 3pm to 7pm (Friday night), London 11pm to 3am and Paris midnight to 4am (early Saturday morning))

... to be visible at the following link during those times and any time thereafter ...

LIVE ZAZENKAI NETCAST at GOOGLE+ IS HERE:CLICK ON THE TAB ON LOWER RIGHT FOR 'FULL SCREEN

FOR THOSE NOT ALREADY MEMBERS OF THE CIRCLE WHO WISH TO JOIN TO SIT LIVE WITH A CAMERA, INSTRUCTIONS are posted AT THIS LINK. WE ARE NOW LIMITED TO 10 INDIVIDUALS WITH CAMERAS, BUT ANY NUMBER CAN WATCH LIVE 'ONE WAY' AND SIT-A-LONG VIA THE ABOVE SCREEN. IF JOINING WITH CAMERA, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR MICROPHONE IS MUTED:

Our Zazenkai consists of our chanting the 'Heart Sutra' and the 'Identity of Relative and Absolute (Sandokai)' in English (please download our Chant Book at the link below), some full floor prostrations (please follow along with me ... or a simple Gassho can be substituted if you wish), a little talk by me ... and we close with the 'Metta Chant', followed at the end with the 'Verse of Atonement' and 'The Four Vows'. Oh, and lots and lots of Zazen and walkin' Kinhin in between!

Please download and print out the Chants we will recite at the following link (PDF):

I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU POSITION YOUR ZAFU ON THE FLOOR IN A PLACE WHERE YOU ARE NOT STARING DIRECTLY AT THE COMPUTER SCREEN, BUT CAN GLANCE OVER AND SEE THE SCREEN WHEN NECESSARY. YOUR ZAFU SHOULD ALSO BE IN A POSITION WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE COMPUTER SCREEN WHILE STANDING IN FRONT OF THE ZAFU FOR THE CEREMONIES, AND HAVE ROOM FOR BOWING AND KINHIN.

ALSO, REMEMBER TO SET YOUR COMPUTER (& SCREEN SAVER) SO THAT IT DOES NOT SHUT OFF DURING THE 4 HOURS.

I hope you will join us ... an open Zafu is waiting. When we drop all thought of 'here' 'there' 'now' 'then' ... we are sitting all together!

I will hopefully get done on time, if not, there is always tomorrow.
Gassho, Jakudo Hinton

Gassho, Shawn Jakudo Hinton
It all begins when we say, “I”. Everything that follows is illusion.
"Even to speak the word Buddha is dragging in the mud soaking wet; Even to say the word Zen is a total embarrassment."
寂道

I hope I didn't disturb anyone with my ill fated attempt to jump in live after everything had already started. I thought I had successfully distracted the toddler, but I was discovered after only a few minutes. He sat with me for a brief few seconds then went on a rampage blowing out candles, turning off lights, dumping out incense, and re-arranging the alter (he was driving Buddha around like a car) He was also being so loud that I was irrationally worried that he would disturb everyone (I checked that the mic was muted like three times, but he is so very loud) Anyway, I decided to bail and will try to sit again tomorrow morning.

I hope I didn't disturb anyone with my ill fated attempt to jump in live after everything had already started. I thought I had successfully distracted the toddler, but I was discovered after only a few minutes. He sat with me for a brief few seconds then went on a rampage blowing out candles, turning off lights, dumping out incense, and re-arranging the alter (he was driving Buddha around like a car) He was also being so loud that I was irrationally worried that he would disturb everyone (I checked that the mic was muted like three times, but he is so very loud) Anyway, I decided to bail and will try to sit again tomorrow morning.

Gassho,
Nengyo

I did not notice a thing at all.

I was reading about the monk's hall for Zazen (the Sodo) at Sojiji head temple. Actually, I have sat Sesshin there myself several times when I sat with the Lay group there, so can verify. They built the delivery road right next to the Sodo, so several times each sitting, some motorcycle delivery guy or truck passes by quite noisely. Everyone just keeps sitting.

I tell people when they come to Treeleaf Tsukuba ... and the birds are tweeting, the breeze is blowing, and trucks pass (sometimes a chopper from the military base) ...

... bird is just bird, breeze is just breeze, truck is just truck, copter is just copter. Same with dogs and toddlers.

Hearing those birds half a world away is a charming aspect of these Zazenkais (plus it's a good indicator that my internet is working )

Usually it is the oil heater which likes to play "Twinkle Twinkle" or "Love me Tender" when the oil gets low. I can't find the button to switch that off.

In Dogen's day, they used live fire wood and coal for heat ... which explains why Eiheiji and Sojiji both kept burning down.

By the way, another things about the Sojiji Zazenkai ... They had (if can you believe it) a PA system that used to make loud announcements during Zazen, like "YAMAMOTO ROSHI, YOU HAVE A CALL ON LINE 2". At Taisoji temple, it was traffic sounds and the train passing every few minutes. At Nishijima Roshi's Dojo, it was the crowded children's playground right outside the open window as we sat on Saturday mornings.

"Know that the practice of zazen is the complete path of buddha-dharma and nothing can be compared to it....it is not the practice of one or two buddhas but all the buddha ancestors practice this way."
Dogen zenji in Bendowa